Meet Thomas Crowell

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Thomas Crowell. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Thomas with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
I get my Work Ethic from my natural Drive and Ambition. This also ties into my Creativity as well, I will Elaborate.

I have always been a driven and motivated person, especially when it comes to something I am passionate about. Ever since I was a child, I have always been pursuing creative endeavors, as I am naturally a creative and thoughtful person. From making movies as a Filmmaker in Highschool, to pursuing music as a career for myself, I have always enjoyed creating and telling stories.

Tying this into my work ethic, I know from experience that creating anything great takes time, and much effort must be put into your work. One cannot simply do the bare minimum and expect grand results, it takes a well thought out idea and impeccable execution.

When I first began my Music Journey, knowing nothing at all about music theory, sound design, mixing and mastering, I took it upon myself to build a solid foundation. I started off using GarageBand on my laptop, putting together ideas and experimenting for a year. My parents noticed my dedication to creating music and gifted me Logic Pro X for my birthday. I then used Logic for 4 years throughout Sophomore Year in Highschool and into College. When my birthday came around again in College, my parents gifted me Ableton Live, and I have been using that for 6 years now and currently still use it today. So I have been making music for over 11 years to date now.

As I stated before, I wanted to build a solid foundation for myself. I embarked on a journey to learn Sound Design from a fundamental level. For me, I have always found it easier to create my own building blocks, as I can then sculpt my creation exactly as I envision it. I have been on my Sound Design Journey for about 7 years now, putting in my 10,000 hours not only into music production but learning how to create sounds from scratch. FM Synthesis (Frequency Modulation) is one of my favorite methods. From my understanding, this involves manipulating one waveform with the frequency of another, essentially “Blending” the sounds together and creating new textures, timbres, and tones. I love using the 4 Natural Waveforms: Sine, Saw, Square, and Triangle. I am deeply fascinated by modulating these waveforms in different combinations together, because I interpret this as “Creating Natural Sounds, which may not naturally exist otherwise.”

During my final two years in college when I lived off campus in a 1 bedroom apartment, I set my alarm for 8am, and would work on music until I had class in the afternoon, then come back and continue working on music until the late evening when I would eventually stop myself to have dinner. I made sure to still get my schoolwork done and excel in my studies, but I used every moment of my free time to continue working on my craft. I would do this at least 5 days a week consistently for those 2 years. I spent very little time socializing then, as most of my friends at the time were upperclassmen who had all graduated, so I took the opportunity to hone in and focus.

As I continued to work on my craft and develop my brand, I realized that it takes time for anything to grow. So naturally I fell in love with the process. With this in mind, I go into any situation prepared to give it 110% of my effort and to not expect anything to happen overnight. From continuous perseverance, I naturally developed my work ethic, some of the greatest qualities of that are my Perseverance, Dedication, Communication Skills, and ability to Create Art which tells a story.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I am a Dubstep Producer and DJ who enjoys creating music, performing, and DJing. I would describe my sound as: Dark, Grungy, Metallic, Aggressive and Atmospheric. The complexity of my song arrangements is what I take pride in, painting such a profound in depth structure which one can truly appreciate.

This year in 2023 I released 3 EPs “Doom EP”, “Dark Sorcery EP”, and “Nightshade EP” as well as several singles and remastered songs on all Streaming Platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music. These projects contain some of my best up to date work which I am proud to share with the world. I also released my hit single “Glock Shots (feat. Nxrthsïde Ron)”, a collaborative work with Hip Hop Artist Nxrthsïde Ron. We also released the Official Music Video back in July a week after the song came out.

I have performed several shows back in my college days at Marist, opening for some local DJs at Clubs and Concert Venues in Poughkeepsie New York. I am excited to start playing shows here in Los Angeles and expanding from there. I am currently networking to get myself more bookings to play in shows, and also bringing out my DJ equipment, Street Performing at the Santa Monica Pier. I am doing everything I can to get myself more exposure.

While I am still creating music in the background, I have recently been focused on creating visual content for my Instagram and other social media platforms. I see creating Visual Content as one of the best ways to get engagement and grow my brand. In December 2023 I am releasing my next Melodic Dubstep song “Waiting For You” which is a direct followup to my previous track “Stay With Me”. I am also putting out a music video with this song as well. These two songs are connected to each other and the message of this song will be expressed in the music video.

Ever since I was in High School, it has been a dream of mine to perform in Music Festivals. Back in 2014 when my Dad took me to my first festival, Electric Daisy Carnival – Las Vegas, I imagined myself on stage performing and showcasing my music. I envisioned my music making people dance, feeling happy and alive. That is one of the greatest joys for me being an artist, seeing how my music can impact people, making them feel excited and dance.

My Branding and Story is what makes me unique as a Dubstep Artist:

“I Am Mystic Wonder, The Sorcerer of Heavy Bass Music.” As a Mystic, my Superpower is Sound Design, and I express that within my music. I like to think of playing my music as “Casting Spells”.

Some of the Imagery and Themes of my brand include Skulls, Candles, Darkness and Lightning. I will explain the significance of what these different things mean to me and my brand.

Skull: The Skull is the Home of your Mind, I like to associate this with Knowledge, Higher Consciousness, Creativity and Wisdom.

Candles: I think of Candles as a representation of life. It begins with a small spark, which gets brighter as it grows. Some candles give off wonderful fragrance, and come in all shapes and sizes. But they do not burn forever, eventually they reach the end of the wick and fade out. This is a reminder of mortality, but with that we can choose to enjoy our gift of life and make the most of our time doing what we love.

Darkness: While some may perceive Darkness as Evil, That is not the representation I have for myself. Mystics do not see Darkness as Evil, they realize that Darkness is simply a Void of Light. The significance of Darkness is that this void gives light the space to shine. It is within the Darkness that Light is able to glow. So I see Darkness as the Origin of Creation, and The Canvas of Expression.

Lightning: The significance of lightning is that it is electricity. We are all energetic beings, electrical currents flow through our body, nerves, and organs. It is the “spark of life” which pulsates through our very being. Incorporating this natural element into my brand is a reminder to us that we are all energy.

All of these Images and Themes are significant to my Brand, because this is what makes me stand out as an EDM Artist, the Deep Profound Story of my Brand, Character, and Being.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
In My Journey, I would say Three Significant things that stand out to me as most important are:

1. Create a Story for your Brand
2. Learn Fundamental Skills and Build a Foundation of Knowledge for yourself
3. Develop a Strong Work Ethic, Fall in Love with the Process

Human Beings have been telling stories since the beginning of time, it is one of the most effective ways to share themes, ideas, events, and thoughts. The very nature of a story is captivating and intriguing because it is something that evolves and changes over time. It is the perfect catalyst to connect Ideas together, so creating a story for your Brand is one of the best things you can do. Everyone’s story is unique, this will set you apart from others and you will naturally stand out. Because stories evolve over time, it is an opportunity for you to share how your Brand’s story will grow and change over time as well. The marvelous thing about evolving stories is when we look back at old chapters, and we see the growth and journey. Looking at progress is something everyone likes to see, so creating a story for your Brand is one of the best things you can do.

A Grand Structure can only stand on a solid foundation. It is important for you to take the time to learn and develop fundamental skills for whatever field you are in. A Doctor must go to Medical School to learn the Fundamentals of Medicine, and a Lawyer must go to Law School to learn the Fundamentals of the Law, and how the Judicial System works. Only then can they go into practice, because they understand how everything works from the inside and out. The same thing applies for anyone who wishes to build a brand or start a company, you must build a foundation of knowledge to be able to understand how to navigate and move forward and create the outcome you want. The other important factor here is that there are no shortcuts. No shortcuts can be taken if one is to build a foundation of knowledge, because they must explore every corner and leave no stone unturned. Only through exploration can someone truly discover and know. Having a foundation of knowledge and understanding in your field, or creative practice will give you more freedom. Because you know and understand the mechanics of how everything works, you can use this to your benefit to create exactly what you want. Having a fundamental set of skills and knowledge will allow you to create something unique that will stand out. For my case, learning the fundamentals of Music Production and Sound Design gave me the ability to create exactly what I’m looking for. I understand the fundamentals of sound design so I can create the exact sound I’m looking for, or through experimentation I can make a new discovery, or manipulate the sound to my taste. Knowing the fundamentals of Music Production, Mixing and Mastering, gives me the freedom to mix and master songs myself, and sculpt my songs to sound how I would like them to. Only You can see your vision exactly how it is in your mind, so I find it most effective to learn how to create as much as you can yourself so you can create your vision exactly how you want to.

Developing a Strong work Ethic will happen naturally if you fall in love with the process and the journey. Understanding that creating things take time will naturally develop your perseverance and patience. The Journey is a Marathon, not a Sprint. I heavily emphasize “Falling in Love with The Process” because this was something I had to learn myself. I had heard people talking about “Falling in Love with The Process”, but I never truly comprehended that or understood it until I experienced being in the process myself. It may be hard at times, there may be moments when you get stuck and feel like you are not moving forward. There may even be times when it feels like you’re falling behind or you may get set back. Understand that this is all apart of the journey, and know that even when it seems like you’re not moving forward, or even moving backwards, you are never truly being set back. The Truth Is, unless you’ve given up, you are ALWAYS moving forward. Even in the process of setbacks or stagnation, you are gaining EXPERIENCE and KNOWLEDGE. There were many times when I sat down to make a song and could not come up with an idea. The truth is, I don’t always end up creating a song whenever I sit down to make one. I sit down to make a song because I am putting myself in the position to do so, but not forcing anything to happen. That’s the trick, putting yourself in the position to create as often as possible, but not forcing the creation. Even if you sit down to create something, but only end up experimenting or writing notes, that is NOT TIME WASTED, because you gain experience EVERY TIME you put yourself in the position to create. You reap what you sow, and get out what you put in, so it’s important to put in as much effort as possible and be intentional with what you do. Because that will determine the results you get. Ultimately you should be putting yourself in the position to create because it’s FUN! You should enjoy what you do, that’s why you chose to do it right? That should be your mentality when you are approaching the creative process. Understand that there are seasons for everything, creation happens in it’s own timing, but it’s about being open, patient, and putting yourself in the position to create as often as possible because it’s something you enjoy. If your creation is coming from a place of play, fun, joy, and excitement, naturally the results you get will be spectacular.

What would you advise – going all in on your strengths or investing on areas where you aren’t as strong to be more well-rounded?
I would say it is wise to be well rounded to a certain degree, but certainly capitalize on your strengths. It doesn’t make sense to invest your time and energy in something you are not as strong in, UNLESS it is something that could be beneficial for you in your overall objective.

For me, I originally was very hyper focused in my Music Production Journey, my strengths were Music Production, Storytelling and Branding, but my approach to marketing at the time needed improvement. I could come up with creative ideas to market myself, but what needed improvement was figuring out how to reach my target audience. Back in 2022 I took an 18 week Digital Marketing Bootcamp Course at Pepperdine University, where I earned a Professional Certification in the study of Digital Marketing. I applied my knowledge from this course into my marketing strategy for myself with my brand. For the past year and a half I have been running Ad Campaigns on Instagram & Facebook and targeting specific audiences which would resonate most with my content. Not only that, but I figured out how to more effectively advertise my brand, content, and music to people and capture their attention very quickly.

Before taking the Digital Marketing Course I had no specific knowledge aside from the basic advertising skills I gathered from my Studies at Marist College. I took it upon myself to learn these new skills because having knowledge of Digital Marketing makes sense for the purpose of growing my brand and getting myself the exposure I’m looking for. Another example: If I had no skills or knowledge of Video Production or Editing, it would make sense to learn this, because video is another medium I can use together with my music, and create content to promote myself.

Aside from learning new things that make sense with what your goals are, you should most certainly capitalize on your strengths and what you’re already good at. It is much more effective and practical to be a Specialist in something rather than have general common knowledge of many things. In my case, doubling down on Sound Design and Music Production will enhance the quality of my music, which is my content. In the end, everything comes down to the quality of your content. If the quality of your content is lacking, it will certainly hold you back in most cases. Having quality content will open doors and present more opportunities for you. All of this ties into earlier points I made about having a clear goal, and channeling all of your efforts to meet your goals.

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